5/17/10

Day two in Barcelona Mary and I made the trek to see the Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's insane and massive gothic cathedral which has been continuously under construction since 1882 (and with no end in sight). I feel totally unqualified to talk about this building, it's loaded with symbolism and every aspect of design has been considered, it's completely overwhelming.

Here's what I can tell you: this is the single most amazing structure I have had the chance to witness. Whether you love it or hate it you can't help but be blown over by the sheer enormity of this project. The imagination and skill required not only dream up something like the Sagrada Familia, but to actually build it (insane) is incomprehensible. On one side is the Nativity facade, a veritable vomit, for lack of a better word, of hundreds of thousands of cast and carved stone flora & fauna, swirling and melding together until the whole face has the appearance that it's melting. Gaudi meant this to be a celebration of everything alive and new, wild, growing, youthful and magic, indicative of Christ's birth. It's the famous side that's always seen on postcards. The more you look at it, the more you discover and one can easily get lost investigating the thousands of elements that make up the whole. It's jubilation in stone form.

In stark contrast, the other side of the church reveals the Passion facade detailing the stages leading up to the crucifixion of Christ. No joyous explosion of animals and greenery is to be found here. The sculptures are austere, simple and highly stylized. Harsh straight cuts in stone signify faces and structures. The supports holding the tower above are like human bone, old and weathered by rain and wind and sun. The whole scene feels emaciated, cold, alone. In its way this face is just as fascinating as the bursting nativity facade. It's certainly more obviously narrative and perhaps even more arresting. It draws feelings of pity, sadness and a wistful acceptance of injustice.

If jubilation and cold austerity mark the outside of the Sagrada Familia, the interior can best be described as 'alien'. Mary commented that being inside the nave felt as if we'd somehow ended up in the belly of some huge, otherworldly creature. To me the nave was all bone, teeth, sinew and tendon, completely alive. There's significant construction going on inside the church so we were allowed only a glimpse of what it looks like and what's yet to come. Completely nuts: I don't know how else to describe it. Totally beautiful and yet totally frightening at the same time. Fascinating as it's such a completely different take on the grandeur and sacrosanct impenetrability of a cathedral - all the elements are there, and the impression upon the lowly individual is the same, but this is done in a way I've never seen. To me it's thousands of times more powerful.

This IS a building I will revisit. The fact that it's constantly under construction means that you'll always see something new. I'd also like to take the lift up into the tower next time, which Mary and I didn't do this trip. Being at La Sagrada Familia was consuming and inspiring. Even if the work doesn't inspire one directly, you can't help but be wowed and knocked cold with creative energy. The knowledge that something like this is possible to dream, to fund, to build, is like a stimulating gift. I am humbled and enamored of life.